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The Mississauga mother accused of killing her toddler is brought into the prisoner’s box, her long dark hair hanging limply, her dazed eyes darting around the courtroom, still shocked that she is in handcuffs.

As are we all.

A mother charged with murdering her own little girl? It defies the natural order of how things are supposed to be.

Nandini Jha, 35, was charged with second-degree murder on Monday, nine months after her three-year-old daughter Niyati died suspiciously of serious head and brain injuries. Almost a year of dogged police investigation would follow, mention of two “persons of interest”, and now, one arrest.

Her first court appearance was over in a few moments. Dressed in the pink cotton dress she was likely arrested in the day before, Jha was asked to stand and then after the proceedings were translated by a Hindi interpreter, Justice of the Peace Maurice Hudson remanded her in custody until July 5 for a bail hearing. A publication ban was imposed at the request of her lawyer Apple Newton-Smith.

And as quickly as she had been brought in, the stunned prisoner was taken away, leaving so many unanswered questions in her wake.

She and her husband, Sarojanand, a senior web developer, arrived here from India in 2010 with their two daughters and moved into a basement apartment in Mississauga. Photos on her Facebook page — now taken down — show adorable girls and happy outings on the lake. A typical family, enjoying their new, bright life in Canada.

But all may not have been well in the Jha household.

There are reports that the mom was desperate for a son. In India, there is a noted cultural preference for boys and sex selection is a serious problem. A recent study found that between four million and 12 million girls are believed to have been aborted in that country between 1980 and 2010.

Niyati was Jha’s second daughter — was she considered superfluous, a constant reminder of failure and disappointment that she had not been a boy?

There has also been a disturbing CTV news report that a teacher suspected the little girl had been the possible victim of abuse and she’d relayed her concerns to child welfare authorities. But Niyati wasn’t removed from her home. Was this yet another instance of where there were warning signs and nothing done?

A spokesman for Peel Children’s Aid would not comment, citing client confidentiality. How convenient for them. So we may never know.

What we do know is this: On Sept. 20, 2011, an unconscious Niyati was taken to a Mississauga walk-in clinic by a family member who supposedly told a tale of a car crash. With her condition critical, Niyati was immediately sent to Trillium Health Centre and then on to Sick Kids in Toronto where she was listed in critical condition and placed on life support. There was no hope; she died the following day.

For months, investigators remained tight-lipped and even refused to call the death a murder. But Peel Regional Police reportedly became suspicious when there was no evidence of a car accident and their homicide bureau took over the case early on. After a coroners’ report and input from the Sick Children’s Hospital’s Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Unit, they were finally ready to make an arrest.

There is no word on whether there will be any more.

It is the most tragic of stories. A sweet young girl is dead. A mother stands charged with the most heinous of crimes.

And then there is the horrible irony.

At the time of Niyati’s murder, Jha was newly pregnant with her third child. Did she hope that she would finally have the son she so badly wanted?

It was not to be.

She delivered another girl a few months ago. And now both daughters are in the care of the Children’s Aid.

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